Château du Cèdre, formerly known as ‘le Prestige’, epitomizes all the efforts made by the Verhaeghe brothers. 90% Malbec with a touch of Tannat and Merlot which spent 24 months in 2 to 3 year old barrels (a mix of 225l and 500l). Intensely flavoured nose with violet, seeds and dark berries, the palate is rich and multi-layered, yet shows a rare elegance and tension. Dark fruit, prune, black cherry, small red berries and cigar box hints precede a long, fresh, mineral and immaculately balanced finish.
Pascal and Jean-Marc Verhaeghe form one of the most passionate, hard-working and skilled team of winegrowers we have ever come across. The work of Jean-Marc consists of growing, biodynamicaly close-to-perfect grapes in the vineyards, while Pascal meticulously transforms these grapes into arguably, the greatest Malbec wines to be found anywhere.
The 27-ha vineyard is planted on 3 parcels, the first consists of calcareous-clay soils, very stony on the surface, the other two are covered with rolled stones and the subsoils are made of layers of sands with trace of iron followed by silica and clay.
Numerous passages are made in the vineyard to ensure the perfect health, quality and ripeness of the grapes, and all the work is carried by hand as, since 1992, no chemicals have been used. The research of quality is pushed so far that almost each vine receives a special attention.
In the winery, Pascal vinifies the harvest in tanks and foudres, the wines are then matured in 225l or 500l barrels. The use of oak is carefully weighted, each vintage requires different actions, the aim is to produce Burgundy-type wines, that reflects both their terroir and their specific vintage.
Over the years, Pascal has made numerous trials and innovations in order to unleash the ultimate potential of Malbec grapes grown on the soils of Cahors, and the last few vintages have brought Château du Cedre up amongst the very best wineries of the World.
Decanter February 2012 ‘Top 10 French Estate for value’